


Protect

by francoeurs



Category: The Shape of Water (2017)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Interspecies Relationship(s), Romance, don’t read if you really love spiders i guess? this one doesn't get a happy ending i'm afraid
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-12
Updated: 2018-01-12
Packaged: 2019-03-03 17:12:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,662
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13345776
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/francoeurs/pseuds/francoeurs
Summary: She had been terrified of spiders for as long as she could remember.





	Protect

Elisa stood in the middle of her dimly lit kitchen, rooted to the spot and unable to wrench her eyes away from the ghastly sight in front of her. She tucked her fringe behind her ear and straightened her sleeping gown a few times, all nervous energy.

The large, brown, thick-legged, _furry_ spider next to her tea kettle stared back at her placidly. Or at least, Elisa thought that it did. It was probably mocking her, too. ‘ _I’m as big as your hand! No chamomile tea for you, nyehehe!’_ Elisa thought a little hysterically.

She had been terrified of spiders for as long as she could remember. She was fine with snakes and eels. Rodents didn’t particularly bother her. Moths and roaches, she could handle to a certain extent. She’d recently learned that bloody, severed fingers didn’t make her bat an eye.

Spiders, though.

She knew it was a little silly. Most spiders were perfectly harmless. But the strange, unnatural way they moved their legs, their unsettling eyes, their peach-fuzzy fangs, their sticky webs... it all made her brain scream.

Normally, she would run to Giles’ apartment and furiously sign _SPIDER!_ at him until he got the message. He was not a fan of spiders and other creepy crawlies himself, but he _was_ a good friend, so he always squared his shoulders, armed himself with whatever was closest at hand, and marched right into Elisa’s apartment like he was heading to war.

But it was the middle of the night, and after everything he’d done for her – for _him_ – these last few days, she couldn’t disturb his well-deserved rest for something as insignificant as a spider. No, she’d just have to handle this herself. Somehow. She’d be fine. Probably. Maybe.

Not for the first time that week, Elisa wished she could live underwater. A life completely free of house spiders. What a sweet, sweet dream.

Keeping her eyes fixed on the enormous beast, Elisa slowly inched her hand toward the tea box she kept next to the refrigerator. The box was smaller than she was comfortable with (lord, what if one of its appendages touched her skin?), but it was made of metal and had hard, flat surfaces that were perfect for squashing grotesque eight-legged terrors.

Improvised weapon firmly in hand, she took a step forward. Her legs felt as wobbly as that nauseating neon green pie Giles had tried to convince her was edible. She cringed at her traitorous body’s reaction, then shook her head. _I’m not a coward. I’m_ not _a coward. It's natural to be afraid of spiders. It’s smart. It comes from our ancestors. It's instinctive._

The spider continued to stare at her, unimpressed.

Elisa lifted her arm slowly, froze for a few seconds, mustered up some courage, raised her arm a little higher...

And then _it_ _moved_.

Elisa gasped and jumped back, dropping the tea box as the spider scurried toward her. Jesus, it was so large she could HEAR it skittering across the countertop. Tick tick tick tick tick ti—

The tin box clanged as it hit the floor. The sharp sound made her jump again.

The spider finally, blessedly stopped running. One of its front legs tapped the counter twice, as if it were pondering its next move. Elisa fought back a shudder.

She had almost gotten her breathing under control when a curious chirrup sounded in her ear.

Somehow, she didn’t accidentally punch him in the mouth when she whirled around, but it was a near thing. The creature was standing mere inches from her, so close she could feel his cool breath on her face as she peered up at him. Elisa lifted a hand to her chest and willed her poor abused heart to stop racing.

Something like concern shone in his large, shockingly expressive eyes. His gills fluttered a bit as he lifted his hand to touch her trembling chin with his knuckles. His skin was freshly wet from his nap in the bath.

He gave one questioning chirp and cocked his head to one side, eyes appraising. Frozen in place by her distress and the weight of his full attention, Elisa could do nothing but give him a wild look and gesture to the counter behind her with twitchy fingers.

His quizzical gaze slid from her face to the general direction in which she was pointing. His eyes narrowed as he, she assumed, spotted the current bane of her existence. He snapped his eyes back to Elisa and lifted his free hand to his lips. _Bad_? he signed.

Clearly, he didn’t want to repeat his tragic mistake with the cat.

Elisa nodded urgently and signed back, _bad!_

His body language changed immediately. Spiked fins spread out with an audible snap and every single muscle in his body seemed to coil tighter; an impressive feat for a being who seemed to be built of little else. He let go of Elisa’s chin and moved in a slow, calculated way that made him look like the natural hunter he probably was. Elisa kept her eyes on him, fascination overriding fear for a second.

He stopped in front of the counter and went completely still. A moment passed, and then he, quick as a snake, plucked the spider off the countertop.

The spider’s legs flailed frantically in the empty air. The creature made no sound as he held it up in front of his face and examined it with considerable interest.

Elisa felt herself blanch as a disturbing image flashed into her head. _Please don’t eat the spider. Please don’t eat the spider. Please don’t make me watch you eat an enormous spider._

The creature blinked lazily and tilted his head as he continued to scrutinize the unfamiliar critter. Suddenly, one of its furry legs twitched furiously in the direction of his face, and he reeled back with a startled yawp.

His mouth twisted in a moue of distaste. A harsh breath hissed from his lips, and then he was crushing the unfortunate arachnid in his fist with a revolting squishy-crunch that Elisa knew would haunt her for the rest of the night. Still, tingling relief cascaded over her body, right to her fingertips and toes.

The creature opened his fist, and Elisa watched as the misshapen spider carcass hit her kitchen tile with a dull _plop_. One of its legs trembled, and then it was still.

Elisa stared at it for a while and absentmindedly tugged at a loose thread at the bottom of her gown. Movement from the corner of her eye caught her attention, and she looked up to see the creature clenching and unclenching his webbed fingers, his flat nose wrinkled up in disgust.

His troubled expression startled her into action. _Stay_ , she signed quickly with only slightly shaky hands before heading to the bathroom. She slipped on one of the little puddles of water he'd left in his wake, nearly losing her balance, but she caught herself on a doorframe just in time.

She wet a washcloth with lukewarm water and made her way back to the kitchen. She carefully sidestepped the expired spider on the floor and stood in front of her timely savior. He stood still and trilled quietly as she wiped his hand clean with gentle strokes. She threw the washcloth in the sink when she was done.

 _Thank you_ , she signed with a tired and somewhat embarrassed smile.

His gills flared slightly and he straightened up to his full height. He chirped in response, his eyes shining amber and unearthly and _warm_ in the low light of the room. A golden glow appeared on his neck and shoulders; faint, barely noticeable, but growing by the second. He looked quite pleased with himself, despite how sickened he’d looked just a moment ago.

He pointed firmly to himself, then at her, then signed: _protect_.

Elisa’s breath stuttered. She remembered signing this to him the day she’d decided to sneak him out of the lab.

The creature watched her intently, his gills fluttering lightly. _Protect. E-L-I-S-A._

He’d protected her, like she’d protected him.

A wave of tenderness swept through Elisa and morphed into a lump in her throat. She gave him a tremulous smile and a small nod. _Protect,_ she signed back to him.

He lowered his hands from his chest with a contented purr. Her own hands eagerly took their place, flattening against the roughly textured skin of his chest. She rested her forehead against his sternum and let herself melt against him, mesmerized by the low sounds he was making and the way he toyed with her hair, letting the strands slide between his claws. Heat rushed through her as he settled his arms around her in a firm embrace, making the nape of her neck tingle pleasantly.

Elisa tilted her head up so that her lips were brushing against the hollow of his throat. He inhaled sharply and buried his face in her neck, nuzzling the sensitive skin with his nose and lips. His glow changed and grew stronger and more beautiful; a shimmering, blue light that seemed to fill the air around them with magic.

They stood together, enjoying the moment, before she pushed against his chest and reluctantly pulled away. The creature let out an inquisitive grunt and deflated a little, gazing down at her in obvious disappointment.

Elisa heaved a little sigh and pointed at the remains of his victim, which were still on the floor not two feet away from them. A shiver crept up her spine at the ugly sight, and this one wasn’t nearly as pleasurable as the one previously caused by her companion. She wouldn't be able to fully relax or enjoy herself until she saw the curled-up spider swirl down the toilet bowl and out of her life. Cuddles would have to wait.

 _I’ll make it worth the wait_ , she promised silently, with something a little more exciting than hard-boiled eggs and innocent hugs in mind.

**Author's Note:**

> Pointless fluff, but hey, this is the first thing I've written in almost a decade. Please be gentle. I act tough, but I’m actually a fragile lil’ teacup.


End file.
